Through The Looking Glass
by HGP
Summary: What do you do when everything has fallen apart and you feel as if there is nothing left? Can you find a place where you can live your life? Harry discovers the answer to the question of what happens after Voldemort is defeated. With nothing left to lose, what will he do when he finds himself in a new place and a new time? Can he build a life from the ashes of his past?
1. Chapter 1

_**24 June 1995**_

The war was over. Harry mulled that though repeatedly in his mind. Voldemort was dead and gone at last and Harry was free. Nevertheless, the thought did not cheer Harry as much as it once might have. He looked around the bustling Hospital Wing with a sad sigh. All of his friends and loved ones lay in that room injured and dying, or worse. In Ron's case, he would be lucky to end up in the same vegetative state that the Longbottom's have been in for 15 years in the Long-Term ward at St. Mungo's. The brains had done something to Ron that caused him to lash out violently with his magic while at the same time being unable to waken from the coma-like state that he had fallen into. None of Madam Pomfrey's potions or spells could bring Ron out of his condition and Harry had overheard conversations of the team from the Ministry coming in to remove Ron's magic or bind it in such a way that he could live out his days completely shut out from the rest of the world.

Harry turned to Luna next. At first, she had seemed to get the lightest amount of injury. A few scrapes and bruises here and there. However, the Death Eaters had found her during their retreat from the Department of Mysteries and one of them had decided to cast a few extra spells on the whelp he found lurking in the planet room. One of them had slashed her open from just below her neck all the way down to just above her knee on her left side. Luna had lost the majority of the blood in her body by the time that an Order member had found her and gotten her to the Hospital Wing. The blood-replenishing potions sadly were not working as a body needed to have some of its own blood in it for the potion to create new blood. It was only a matter of hours before Luna passed on and was reunited with her mother.

Ginny looked okay at this moment, Harry mused, letting himself focus on the youngest Weasley. She had gotten a badly broken ankle during their chase through the maze of rooms in the Ministry. However, now it looked a great deal more serious than that. Another Death Eater with nothing better to do then cast spells on people randomly as they retreated, Harry thought to himself. Ginny's breathing was laboured and her skin had faded to an impossibly pale shade of white. Every once in awhile she would twitch as if in pain, or cry out in her sleep. Harry had heard voices whisper around him of some kind of nightmare curse that caused loops of vivid realistic nightmares that eventually would cause pain, physical harm, and death. Small bruises and cuts were slowly appearing on Ginny's arms and legs, so the curse had moved to the stage of physical harm and could no longer be reversed.

Neville had stood by him through the entire ordeal, even as the rest of the Ministry party had been injured or knocked unconscious. His nose had been broken as well as his father's wand, but Neville had still stood up to Bellatrix, the women who had tortured his parents into insanity when Neville was a baby. She had put him under the pain curse several times though not long enough to leave him in the same state as his parents. Harry's eyes roamed over the bed that held Neville. The boy's eyes were already blank and glassy with death. Sometime in the precious few hours that Harry had been able to sleep under the influence of a most powerful sleeping draught, Neville had lost his battle with a poorly deflected organ liquefying curse which had been fired at him by someone, Harry hadn't seen it happen since as soon as the Order arrived, he had been busy fighting several duels and then chasing after Bellatrix for what she had done to Sirius. However, Harry heard Madam Pomfrey trying to stop her tears as she finally covered the freshly deceased student with a sheet. She muttered something about the curse having not caused as much pain as usual and that he would look okay for his memorial service since his body was not disfigured as they normally were from the organs being dissolved. Harry shook harder as he overheard the details of Neville's death.

Then Harry turned to the last two beds in the Hospital Wing. One was filled with the familiar bushy brown hair and brown eyes of his best friend in the world Hermione. He had seen her fall from a flash of purple light. The Death Eater had been silenced, but it appeared the curse was more than strong enough to finish it's job. Even from here, Harry could see that Hermione's eyes were as lifeless as Neville's had been. The brown was flat and not sparkling with enthusiasm and knowledge. Tears streamed down Harry's face at the loss of his dearest friend. He would never hear her voice get excited breathless as she explained the homework to him, or get another of her impromptu hugs when she felt that he needed encouragement or cheering up at the end of an adventure.

The occupant of the last bed only increased the tears. It was the last link to his parents now that Sirius had been sent through the veil during the battle. Remus Lupin laid there, chest heaving weakly. Harry pushed himself from his bed with as much haste as he was able. He needed to be there to say goodbye to the last Marauder. Somehow, Harry knew that Remus would not make it through this. Making it to the bed, Harry threw himself on Remus gently, tears still falling from his emerald eyes and running down his cheeks. "Oh Remus, I am so sorry that this happened. Please say something to me," Harry said, burying his face unashamedly into the faded gold cardigan that Remus was wearing over his equally faded white shirt. Fresh blood marred the white fabric in several spots and continued to seep out with each rapid, shallow breath that Remus took.

Remus opened his eyes at the unexpected weight on his chest. He relaxed as much as he could when he noticed that it was Harry, his cub. Remus started to cry as he realized that he would be leaving Harry all alone. "I am the one who should be sorry, cub, I am leaving you all alone in the world," Remus rasped, his voice nearly gone from hours of screaming in agony. "I knew it was at an end as soon as I saw Sirius fall through the veil. You ran away from me and then someone hit me from behind with an Argentum curse," Remus said, carding his fingers through Harry's wild mane of hair soothingly.

"Silver? They hit you with the one thing that would take you from me?" Harry asked, his voice breaking as more tears fell. Harry stopped trying to wipe them away, wanting to savour every moment that he still had with Remus.

"Very good, Harry. Yes, they hit me several times with the curse. I am sure I do not have long left, Harry. I can feel my blood burning in my veins. Nevertheless, always remember that I love you cub. I will be with Sirius and your parents watching over you always," Remus said, his arms beginning to slip from around Harry's slender form.

"No do not leave me, not until I tell you what you mean to me. Sirius left me before I could tell him. I love you, Remus. You hear me? I love you. Tell Sirius and my parents I love them as well and I did not think to say it before. Please, Remus, tell me you heard me," Harry sobbed, his voice echoing in the deathly stillness of the hospital wing.

"I heard you, Harry. I promise to tell everyone. I am so sorry, Harry," Remus said, his voice trailing off as his arms fell away from Harry and his eyes dulled from their normal warm, golden amber to a cold, dark almost brown. Remus Lupin had also been taken from him because of his mistakes. Harry curled into the still warm body under him and willed himself to pass into the beyond with everyone he loved. Harry's magic lashed out and somewhere in the castle in a room that had not been seen in well over 100 years, a dull blue light began to glow from the edges of a large gold gilded mirror.

Madam Pomfrey hurried out of her office to see what was causing such a disturbance in her ward. She saw the glazed eyes of Hermione Granger first. The poor girl had lost her battle with the purple flame curse she had been hit with. The healer quickly covered the body with yet another white sheet and then her eyes fell on the next bed where she spotted that Remus Lupin too had succumbed to his injuries. More tears fell as Madam Pomfrey noticed the slight form of Harry Potter curled into Mr. Lupin's chest sobbing at the loss of his last connection to his parents. She had heard them speaking a few moments earlier and realized that Harry must have been right there when Remus had passed on. She bustled over to the bed with another white sheet in hand to cover the body so a service could be planned. "Come along now Mr. Potter. I am very sorry for his passing, but he is in a better place now," she said, trying to move Harry from his hold on the man.

"NO," Harry screamed, reaching for Remus as he was pulled away. His voice was so full of longing and sadness that it made Madam Pomfrey stop her attempt to loosen his hold on Remus.

She took a deep breath and pulled out her wand. "I am very sorry to do this Mr. Potter, please forgive me," she whispered. "Stupefy," she said, as a jet of red light caused Harry to slump over unmoving across the body of the last of the Marauders, his head resting on Remus' still chest, right above his heart. The spell casting caused Headmaster Dumbledore to appear as swiftly as if he had apparated into the ward.

"So Mr. Lupin too has passed on. I take it that Harry is not handling it well then," Professor Dumbledore stated, his eyes showing no signs of their usual twinkle. He could see that she had ended up having to stun Harry in order to be able to move him from Remus' side. "I will move him back to his bed," Professor Dumbledore said, walking over to two of his favourite students. "How I wish this had not been necessary. I fear that we will need to plan to lay Harry to rest with his friends and family. It is all too much for one so young to bear all at one time," Albus said, picking Harry up and carrying him back to his own bed. "I will miss you my child, but you will find your way to being happy. Something tells me that I may see you again sooner than I think," Albus said.

"Whatever are you talking about Headmaster? Mr. Potter is physically fine. Mentally, he will be hurting for a long time to come. You do not think that he will hurt himself? Shall I restrain him and take away his wand?" Madam Pomfrey asked, bustling over to Harry's bedside. Quietly she removed the stunning spell and watched him wake up.

"Why did you take me away from him? I wanted to lay with him so he wasn't alone…so I wasn't alone," Harry asked, tears falling once again.

Professor Dumbledore waved off Madam Pomfrey and turned back to Harry once she had gone to cover Remus with the sheet, casting the preservation spells on his body as she laid the sheet over him. "Poppy needed to cast the spells so that we can have the memorial for our fallen friends. I know it is hard, Harry, but as I have told you before, to the well-ordered mind, death is but the next great adventure. It may not have been their time, but there's never as much time as you believe you need," Albus said. "Then again, a wise man named Benjamin Franklin, have you heard of him Harry?" Albus asked.

"He was an American. I know he invented things, like bifocal eyeglasses and he liked to experiment with lightning. Something about electricity . . . which of course very few people in the Magical World understand. Hermione. . ." Harry's voice trailed off here, thinking about his best friend and her sharp mind was still far too raw.

"Yes, very good, Harry, Benjamin Franklin once said, Even peace may be purchased at too high a price," Albus said. "We have achieved peace thanks to you, Harry, but the price to you I can tell was far too high," Albus continued.

"I do not think I can do it Professor. I just want to be alone somewhere where I am not surrounded by my mistakes and the people I love who I will never talk to again. I need to get out of here Professor, please," Harry, pleaded, looking around rapidly trying to find an escape from the walls that felt as if they were closing in on him.

"I understand Mr. Potter. I wish we would be parting under more agreeable terms but, Harry, if I do not see you again, know that I love you like the grandson I never had," Albus said, handing Harry a pile of shimmering fabric, and for some odd reason, his shrunken trunk and the cage with his owl Hedwig. "You will find that everything, including your broom which had been chained to the wall of Professor Umbridge's office is now inside your trunk. Here is your wand, best put that in here instead of your pocket, Harry," Professor Dumbledore said, handing Harry his wand and a shiny holster made from black leather. "It is Sirius' holster, I found it in Headquarters just after last night's events and thought you might want it. It is dragon hide and will shrink to fit you," Albus finished with a smile.

Harry strapped it to his arm and felt the magic tingle as the dragon hide shrunk down to his size. "Why are you giving me all my belongings, sir?" Harry asked, thinking that he had just wanted to go for a walk to try to clear his head.

"You never know where your feet will take you and this way you will be prepared for anything you may find," Albus said. "Now off you go, put your trunk in your pocket, throw your outer robe back on and your shoes and get out of here under that cloak of yours," Albus said, helping Harry back into his shoes and robe and then draping the invisibility cloak over Harry's shoulders.

"Thank you professor. I do not know when I'll be back, but I will always remember the help you have given me," Harry said, giving the Headmaster an unexpected hug just before he slipped from the hospital wing.


	2. Chapter 2

Professor Dumbledore just smiled as he cast several charms. In Harry's vacated bed the still form of a messy black haired boy could soon be seen. It's chest was moving up and down erratically and it seemed to be in pain. The smile dropped from the Headmaster's face as he called frantically for Poppy. Ten minutes later the professors remaining in Hogwarts were reduced to tears as, they found out that Harry Potter, The-Boy-Who-Lived-To-Kill-You-Know-Who, had succumbed to a combination of spell residue and a strong poison that caused his blood to turn to acid slowly over time. Madam Pomfrey had missed the combination, which was always fatal, when she examined Harry and had believed him to be the only one who escaped the Ministry without injury.

At the same time that Harry Potter was being declared dead, the real Harry was deep under the castle in a passage that was both narrow and twisting. He seemed to be following some sort of internal map that was leading him further away from any part of the castle he had ever been to before. Somehow, he did not notice the weight of his beloved owl or her cage even as he walked for over an hour. Harry was thinking of turning back to return to the hospital wing, but something told him that what he was looking for was just down this next bend in the hallway.

Turning left and then making another sharp left Harry was led into a large room that was dusty from disuse. There were several fascinating shiny baubles on the shelves that looked like the things that decorated Dumbledore's office. Then at the far end of the room, there was a large gold gilded mirror that seemed to draw Harry to it. At first he thought it was the Mirror of Erised once again, but there were no words carved at the top of the mirror and the gold gilding was bright and fresh looking. Harry stepped closer to the mirror to see what this one would show him. Perhaps, he would see his loved ones alive again and be able to see himself amongst them. Harry needed an adult right now, even if he missed his friends just as much, but he wanted to see his family. Even just Sirius and Remus, after all, he had never known his parents. Something in him longed to be held safely in the arms of Sirius or Remus, or both of them, again. Harry was not entirely sure this was how he should feel about family, but it made him feel safe and loved. Yes, Sirius and Remus were the ones he would miss the most. Harry's hand pressed into the mirror surface eagerly waiting for the image to form, wondering why it did not show anything immediately. The glass was warm to the touch, comforting, and Harry leaned further into the mirror without thinking. "Please show something. I want to be where my family is. I just want everything to be right again," Harry whispered.

At those words, the surface melted from under Harry's hands and with a gentle suction, Harry was pulled through the mirror into the identical room beyond. "What the bloody hell," Harry said, observing that he still appeared to be in the room, except that the mirror was on the opposite side than the one he had been standing in front of. In fact, everything was on the opposite side. Harry shrugged and changed Hedwig's cage to his other hand before striding over to the door and pulling it open. "I will just go tell Professor Dumbledore that I have decided to face everyone after all and thank him again for his help," Harry said to himself. He did not notice when the hallways were no longer twisting and turning, in fact they were showing him the most direct path back to the entrance hall. Before he knew it, Harry was standing behind the large doors that led to the Great Hall. He could hear voices from inside and took a deep breath before pushing open the doors.

_**24 June 1976**_

Harry's first thought was that something was not quite right when he stepped into the Great Hall. He had taken a quick look around the house tables, part of him still hoping to see Hermione's bushy brown curls or Ron's bright red hair even though he knew that he would never see them eating at the Gryffindor table ever again. Looking at who was seated at the tables, however, made him stop in his tracks. Suddenly, he did not recognize anyone who he had gone to school with for five years. Harry's eyes darted to the staff table expecting to see the familiar bearded face of Hagrid, the half-giant, or the horrid pink cardigan that Professor Umbridge always wore to meals. Neither was present. In fact, many of the teachers at the head table were unknown to him. Harry searched for and locked onto Professor Dumbledore. Initiating eye contact Harry tried to push images to the Headmaster that he was here but that there was something wrong. "Ah, I see that our new student has arrived just in time for OWLs. Please excuse me for a few moments while I speak with him in private. I will make introductions when I return," Professor Dumbledore said, gesturing for Harry to join him in the small room off the Great Hall, the room where Harry had been escorted after his name came out of the Goblet of Fire last year.

As soon as they stepped into the room and Professor Dumbledore had waved his wand over the door, presumably to silence it to prevent eavesdropping from the students, Harry broke into rapid, nervous speech. "What happened since I left the Hospital Wing? I just wandered around the castle for a little while to clear my head and when I came back to the Great Hall I did not recognize my classmates or my teachers even though I have been a student here for five years now," Harry said, eyes darting rapidly around the room.

"And what is your name young man?" Professor Dumbledore asked, his voice gentle.

"What? I am Harry Potter. You packed all my things for me when I left the hospital wing after what happened," Harry said, tears gathering again in his eyes.

"I see that something terrible must have happened to you where you came from…or should I say when, Mr. Potter. What year do you believe it is?" Professor Dumbledore asked.

"It is June 1995. I just finished my OWLs before everything happened. Why are you asking this, sir?" Harry asked, afraid that the Headmaster would not be able to help him anymore.

"Oh dear, just as I feared. It is now June 1976, although the students are yet to sit their OWLs this year. Might you know how you travelled 19 years into the past?" Albus asked, marvelling at the boy's resemblance to a certain Mr. James Potter. Albus was certain that this Mr. Potter was James' son from the future, as the boy had said his name was Harry Potter.

"I was walking through the halls trying to clear my thoughts. I have just lost all my remaining family and my friends to the Death Eaters. You gave me all my things and helped me to leave the Hospital Wing because I could not stay there any longer. I walked for about an hour when I was drawn to a room somewhere deep in the dungeons. There was a beautiful mirror. At first, I thought it was the Mirror of Erised, but it was different. This mirror did not show me any sort of image, but it was warm and comforting when I leaned against it. I was thinking about seeing my family again and being with them, and then all of a sudden I was in the same room as before but everything was backwards, the door was on the other side and so was the mirror from where they had been before. I left the room to come find you, and I found myself at the Great Hall," Harry said, knowing that his story sounded odd, even for the Magical World.

"My that is quite a story. Moreover, I see that you have stumbled on The Looking Glass. It seems that it was not as destroyed as it ought to have been after the last time that someone stumbled on it when they should not have. Of course, last time it was a poor Muggle girl named Alice who ended up in someplace called Wonderland. Something about painting roses red, playing cricket with flamingos as the mallets and hedgehogs for balls, plus men made of cards that were the wickets. Oh yes, and a queen who was fond of threatening to cut people's heads off. It was brought here for study for a short time and then was meant to be destroyed before it could activate again since it only happens about once every 100 years or so," Professor Dumbledore said.

"So, I have travelled back in time? I guess that I will have to go back before I end up telling everyone what happened. I know from, a friend, that I must not change anything in the past," Harry said, another thought of Hermione coming to his mind. "What should I do before I get sent back? Can I see those who will become my family?" Harry asked, hoping he could spend even a few hours with a younger Sirius and Remus, and maybe meet James and Lily so he could finally know what kind of people they really were.

"This is different from standard time-travel, Mr. Potter. I am afraid that you will not be able to return to the time you came from. You are now a part of this time. I know there was a muggle account of Alice's adventures in Wonderland, but they did not truly end with her returning to her normal everyday life. That was just the author, one of the researchers on The Looking Glass, trying to make a happier ending to that particular story. He got the information from reading the memories of the mirror. It showed what had happened to Alice. It is not that she was not happy in her new life. However, it was so different from her life as an ordinary Muggle that she found it nearly impossible to adapt. Part of her always longed to leave and go home again. That is what most likely inspired Mr. Carroll's ending for his account of her story. Once you pass through The Looking Glass this becomes your reality. In a way, it is like dimension-travel and time-travel together. You never know if you will end up in a totally different world so to speak like Alice, or just in a time, that is not your own like yourself. Now, do you believe that you are up to taking your OWLs starting later today?" Professor Dumbledore asked kindly.

"So this will be my home now. I can have a family, make new friends. They will not replace the ones that I have lost, but I thought that I would be alone forever. Oh no, does that mean that Voldemort is still in power?" Harry asked.

"He is, but do not worry yourself with that just now. I have people working on defeating him. I am guessing that you were part of that effort in your own time even though you are far too young," Albus said.

"I was the one who defeated him. It only happened yesterday for me. During or just before my fight with Voldemort, his Death Eaters killed my friends as well as the two adults that are somewhat like family that I had left. By this morning everyone had died, or as good as died since they will never wake up again from their coma," Harry said, still a bit worried to be talking about his future, and feeling the sting of his loss each time it was mentioned.

"My dear boy. Let us get you introduced to the students. Then you can get something to eat, even if it is just a bit of toast. I see no need for a fake name. You are just a young student who was schooled somewhere else and has come here to take his OWLs and finish his education. After breakfast, I can quickly contact Mr. James Potter's parents, your grandparents I believe, and ask them to take you into their family. You may tell them of your true relation to James as you wish, but otherwise they will find that you are a cousin to the family, recently orphaned who came to find someone to care for him instead of being dumped into the orphanage," Albus said.

"I can retake my OWLs? You would do that for me sir? Help me to find my family again even if my father would become my cousin?" Harry asked, hope in his eyes for the first time since he had the vision during his History of Magic exam, which had led to the Ministry nightmare in the first place.

"Yes, I will. Which electives are you taking OWLs for? They are the first classes to test today, tomorrow, and Tuesday, with the core subjects testing the rest of the week. The first few days are very full since we include Herbology, History of Magic, and Astronomy with the electives. I know it is odd to start exams on a Sunday, but this way everyone gets Friday to unwind from the exams, get packed to leave, and enjoy the feast," Albus said.

"Can I take an OWL if I did not take the class in my own time? My friend tutored me in the last year to be able to take the OWL independently in Arithmancy, Ancient Runes, and Muggle Studies since I did not want to stay in Divination. So I would like to test in all of the electives if possible, sir" Harry said, thinking that Hermione would be proud of him trying to improve his grades this time around.

"Yes, I believe that can be done. You will have Written exams only for Arithmancy, Ancient Runes, Muggle Studies, and History of Magic. Those will all be today. Then tomorrow you will have the Written exams for Herbology and Care of Magical Creatures in the morning and the Practical exams in those classes in the afternoon. Tuesday morning will be the Written exams for Astronomy and Divination, with the Practical exam in Divination in the afternoon, and the Practical exam in Astronomy at about 10 pm after it gets dark. Then you'll be down to just the four main courses. Wednesday morning is Written Potions and Charms in the morning, Practical exams in the afternoon. Thursday finishes with Transfiguration and Defence Written exams in the morning, and Practical exams in the afternoon. Do you think you can handle that right now, Harry?" Albus asked, a look of concern on his face, though his eyes were twinkling as brightly as the silver stars on his midnight blue robes.

"I will be fine, Professor. I need to be busy for a few days, and this is a good busy, not me moping around the castle," Harry answered, the light starting to come back to his emerald eyes. If he was stuck here for good, he may as well live his life and not worry so much about everything else. "Plus I want to prove I can get as many OWLs as I can," Harry added, a shy smile lighting up his face even more.

"Excellent, let us return to the feast. You already have the Gryffindor crest on your robes so no need to change anything there," Albus said, putting his arm around Harry and leading him back into the Great Hall. "Ladies and Gentlemen. Thank you for your patience while I spoke with our newest student. This is Harry Potter who comes to us from being home-schooled. His family had made an agreement for him to join Hogwarts for his OWL testing and the remainder of his education. He has been sorted into Gryffindor," Albus announced, making a show of directing Harry towards the Gryffindor table. "Oh, and can I please see Mr. James Potter and Mr. Harry Potter after breakfast, you have an hour or so before your first exam. Let us start with a few words, Flummox, Aardvark, Ventriloquist," Albus said, eyes sparkling at full power as he clapped his hands to signal for the food to appear on the tables.

"Excuse me, do you need someone to lead you to the Gryffindor table?" A soft quiet voice said from just in front of where Harry was standing.

Harry looked up and saw that the voice belonged, as he had thought, to a much younger and healthier looking Remus Lupin. Harry's breath caught in his throat. Remus was beautiful anyway, but at this age, he was gorgeous. Great, now I am mentally hitting on one of my father figures, Harry thought. "Yes please, if it would not be too much trouble," Harry answered, reaching out to shake the hand that Remus had offered Harry at some point during his thoughts to himself.

"No trouble at all, I am a prefect this year and it is part of my job to help the students. Plus James Potter is one of my friends and is anxious to know why he was called to Professor Dumbledore right before OWLs start when he swears he has not done anything," Remus said, a smile playing on his lips as he stared at the new student. Remus could sense a small amount of anxiety and fear as well as a deep underlying sadness that radiated from Harry. He could also feel how soft and smooth Harry's hand was in his. He is tiny, I had better make sure he eats more than just toast for breakfast, Remus thought to himself, not knowing why he wanted to hold on to Harry and not let him go. Remus cleared his head from those thoughts and led Harry to the table and the empty space that was left in their group now that Peter had been pulled out of Hogwarts by his mother.


	3. Chapter 3

**AN**: Last chapter that I can post here I'm afraid, but this chapter and chapter 4 will be posted on AFF (see info on my profile page) as soon as I get my computer to stop hating me when I try to open more than one thing at a time. It's almost time for a new computer again I'm afraid. I have a couple of baby plot bunnies that I'm trying to coax into new stories at the moment but I don't know when I'll be posting anything else. Thanks for all the reviews, it seems I have a bit of a following for my work, and I appreciate the support!

* * *

"Hey, how come we never knew you had a little brother, Prongs?" said a tall black-haired boy who was sitting opposite of Harry.

Harry instantly recognized a younger and healthy looking Sirius, and paled for a moment when he almost threw himself across the table to hug Sirius once again. It had been less than 24 hours since Harry had seen Sirius die in the future life he had just left. Again, Harry felt safety and love when he looked at Sirius, just the same as when he had caught himself staring at Remus a few moments ago.

"I did not even know I had a younger brother, Padfoot, so how could I have told you," said the other dark-haired boy, this one with messy hair and glasses.

Harry realized with a jolt that this was his father, James. The same feeling of love and comfort was not there, but a feeling of friendship and security flooded him almost immediately.

"I am Harry Potter. I do not think that we are brothers, but Professor Dumbledore said something about contacting your parents because he does believe that we are related somehow. Cousins or something like that. I was raised by Muggles because no one knew where my mother and father were. Now I am here to finish my education, especially with what just happened to my family," Harry said, his voice trailing off as tears came to his eyes for the hundredth time since he had woken in the Hospital Wing.

"Hey now, are you okay?" Sirius asked, leaning closer to Harry, despite the table being in the way.

"I do not think I can talk about it just yet. We have our tests this morning and I need to do well. Thank you though for caring," Harry answered, something making him reach across the table to link hands with Sirius as he graced the younger version of his godfather with a small smile.

Sirius marvelled at the feeling of soft skin touching him. It made the dog in him whine for more, thankfully, his inner dog was silent or he may have embarrassed himself in the middle of the Great Hall.

"You are welcome, Harry. Do you think Professor Dumbledore would mind if we tagged along at your meeting? If he's calling Mr. and Mrs. Potter, I mean Remus and I will be living there this summer as well after everything that has happened," Sirius said.

"I do not think he would mind, but perhaps you should ask when we finish eating," Harry answered, picking up a single slice of toast and nibbling the edges. He still was not hungry and did not know when he would ever feel like eating again.

"You need to eat something more than toast, a good breeze would blow you right off your broom," Remus said, pulling the nearest serving tray over and placing a slice of quiche and a sausage on Harry's plate.

"Yes, please eat. If you come stay with us my mum will worry so about you not eating that she might haul you to St. Mungo's to find out why," James said, noticing the sly glances that both of his friends were giving to his new relative. They had to be related, Harry and he. There were just too many similarities for Harry to not be at least his cousin. James was not sure about the intentions his friends had towards his honorary little brother, but there wasn't anyone outside of the Marauders he would trust to take care of Harry and help him open up.

"I really do not think I can eat this right now. I know I have not told you anything, but I am sure that Professor Dumbledore will tell James' parents the story of what happened to me yesterday. I promise I will eat more after exams, or at least try to anyway so that no one has to worry about me. I am used to taking care of myself," Harry said. "Now, I will see you up at the teacher's table when you are done. It is close to the end of breakfast," Harry said, pulling his hand away from Sirius, not even realizing that he had still been holding it. He stood up and walked over to the head table to wait for Professor Dumbledore.

Remus finished his breakfast quickly, figuring that he could eat more at lunch if he needed to. Sirius also seemed in a hurry to go to Harry, and made a point to drag James with him. Not that James did not want to go, but he had not been quite as ready as Sirius to travel up to the head table.

Harry fidgeted as he waited for Professor Dumbledore to finish his meal. He did not want to hear the painful story of his life repeated in front of what were basically strangers, but he needed this chance to connect with someone now that all his connections in his other life were gone. Even if they had not been, Harry mused, there would have been no way for Harry to ever return to them again, so maybe it was for the best that there are no people for him to miss in his other life. If only he had not had to see everyone he loved die then he might have been comforted by that fact, Harry thought. He was broken from his thoughts by a voice clearing their throat right next to him, and someone on his other side putting their arm around his shoulders. Harry looked up and saw that Sirius had his arm around him and Remus was standing there very much looking like he wished he had thought of it first. James reached the group just as the Headmaster finished eating and graced the group with a smile as he stood from his seat. "I should have known you would all want to come together to hear about the newest Mr. Potter. I believe there is one more person who should hear this story, because of what will be revealed," Albus said to them quietly. Then in a louder voice he called out, "Miss Evans, would you also please join us in my office for a few moments, I promise you will be perfectly on time for your first examination," Albus announced, waiting for Lily Evans to stand up from her spot at the Gryffindor table and join them near the doors to the Great Hall. "Hold your questions until we get to my office if you would," Albus added, seeing the look on Lily's face.

They proceeded to the Headmaster's office where the young people found a place to sit on a pair of loveseats . Remus and Sirius led Harry to the first one and gently sat him down, seating themselves on either side of him for support. James smirked at this move and gestured for Lily to sit on the other loveseat with him, which she did reluctantly, wanting to hear about the new boy and why the Headmaster wanted her to be here. In the meantime, Albus busied himself with calling the elder Potters through the floo and asking them to step into his office. He had to reassure them that James had not caused any trouble, at least nothing irreparable, and that was not what the meeting was for. They stepped through the fireplace, causing everyone's heads to snap up in surprise since they had been engaged in quiet conversation amongst themselves for the last five minutes. "I have called you here because Mr. Harry Potter is looking for a way to connect to his remaining family," Albus started out, pointing to Harry. "He just escaped a Death Eater attack that claimed the life of all of his friends and the last remaining family that he had in the world, at least he thought so, until he met me and I saw the resemblance to the Potter family with whom he shares his last name," Albus said.

Remus and Sirius immediately put an arm each around Harry, holding him between them in a three-way hug. Harry let his head shyly rest against Sirius' shoulder as he felt even more tears blur his vision. Sirius smelled of pine needles and leather with the slightest hint of wet dog. He could also smell Remus on his other side that smelled of old books and chocolate with a little hint of musk. The smells brought him back to the last Christmas that he spent at Grimmauld Place and sneaking into Sirius' room in the middle of the night so that Mrs. Weasley would not catch him awake. He and Sirius would talk for hours and Sirius would hold him tight to his chest until Harry fell asleep feeling comforted and safe.

"Excuse me, Headmaster, I am very sorry to hear about Harry's story, but why have you asked me here for what seems to be a family matter," Lily asked, looking at the other occupants of the room. She had heard, as everyone had, that Remus' family had been killed this past winter just after Christmas. Lily also knew that Sirius had moved in with the Potter's at about the same time because his family had disowned him. However, she had no idea why she would be called into a meeting about the Potter family.

"If Harry is ready to tell his full story now, or at least as much of is as will fit before exams start in 45 minutes then having you here Miss Evans will give him one less time that he has to repeat what happened to him," Albus said, looking with some concern at Harry who was still leaning against Sirius like he was unable to let go.

Harry sat up, but allowed Remus and Sirius to keep their arms around him. "It is a long story, so I will tell as much of it as I can now. Please do not interrupt me, even though it may be hard for you to believe. It is very hard to tell this story," Harry said. He took a deep breath. "To begin, I am not originally from this time. When I woke up this morning it was 24 June 1995," Harry paused, waiting for an interruption. All he got were a few deep intakes of breath from his audience and the slight tightening of the arms holding him steady. "I woke up in the Hospital Wing after a battle gone horribly wrong. All five of the friends that had come with me when I went into battle were dead, dying, or for one, in a comatose state that he would never wake up from. My godfather had been killed during the battle, and the other adult in my life lived just long enough after I woke up for me to hear his final words before he died in my arms," Harry paused again, this time to wipe away the tears that had fallen during the most painful part of his story. "Professor Dumbledore, the one in that time, carried me away from the last family I had and then proceeded to hand me my shrunken trunk with all of my things and the cage containing the snowy owl I received for my eleventh birthday. He told me that he knew everything was too much for me to bear and that the price of peace had been too high. I walked through the school until I was in a place that I had never seen before. In the room was a mirror. It drew me to it and then literally drew me into it. It was something called The Looking Glass. I ended up leaving 1995 and ended up here," Harry said, finishing what was in some ways both the easiest and hardest part of his story. He still had 35 minutes before they needed to leave for their first exam.

Remus looked over Harry's head at Sirius who had the same horrified and sad expression on his face that Remus was sure was on his own. They moved just a tiny bit closer to the boy sitting between them, both having difficulty overcoming the urge to pull Harry into their lap to make sure that he was close enough to them.

"I really am Harry Potter. I was born 31 July 1981 to James and Lily Potter," Harry said, indicating James and Lily who were sitting relatively close together on the opposite love seat. "There is no future for me to return to. I am now a part of this time line. Even if there were a way for me to return, everyone I love is gone. Mum, Dad, Sirius, Remus, my friends, anyone that I could love, they have all been taken from me," Harry continued, trying not to react to the sounds of quiet sobbing he could hear from the loveseat that Professor Dumbledore had conjured for the elder Potters. "All I want here is to be honest so that I might have a chance to find someone to belong to. Professor Dumbledore offered to contact my family here to see if I would be welcome. He said records would show that I was a cousin to James, even if I decided to share my story," Harry finished, not able to go into as many details as he would have liked, too afraid that they would reject him and leave him alone in this time as well.

"Well then, Harry dear, I can see that I will need to make sure you have plenty to eat as soon as you are ready to eat again. I am your grandmother Dorea Potter. You can call me grandma please when we are just family, or Auntie Dory in public," said the older women. She was tall with black hair and eyes that looked to be the same gray as Sirius'. Harry looked between the two, noticing the resemblance.

"Auntie Dory is my mother's aunt, so my great-aunt. There's a burn mark on the Black family tapestry that once was her name. Burnt off for marrying Mr. Potter even though he's a pure blood," Sirius said, noticing Harry looking between him and Mrs. Potter.

"And I am Charlus Potter. You can call me grandpa when it is just family or Uncle Chas. I happen to like that nickname best from all the ones you can get from Charlus," said the man next to Mrs. Potter. He was tall as well, at least six feet tall, with the same jet black messy hair that James had, and that had gotten passed down to Harry. Uncle Chas had the same Hazel eyes that James had gotten.

"I am happy to meet you both," Harry said quietly, fighting his desire to bury his face in Remus' robes. They were the same colour as the ones that Remus had been wearing when he had died in the future time.

"So I am your mother. I can see a lot of similarities. You have my eyes for sure, and my nose and facial structure. I think you have my hands as well. They are certainly smaller than your father's and you have much longer fingers. I am afraid you will have my height as well rather than getting that from the Potter side," Lily said, approaching Harry carefully to get a closer look at him.

Harry did not move from his spot. It was not that he did not want to get to know his mother, it was that he was being drawn closer to Remus and Sirius and could not make himself move away from the only bit of comfort he had known in a long time.

"Hello mum. Are you the one with knobbly knees as well, or are those from dad?" Harry asked, calling them his parents for the first time. It was a bit awkward thinking of being the same age as his parents, but Harry would take what he would get.

"The knees are all mine I am afraid, son. You will grow out of them eventually, although I am guessing that is not until after we turn 17 and hit our maturity," James said, also standing up to get a closer look at his son.

"I think it would be easier to call you cousin, rather than father. I do not know why that is other than we are the same age," Harry said, nervously.

"I think that would be just fine cousin. And I think from the look on the Headmaster's face that it is time to go to our first exam," James said, seeing that Professor Dumbledore was looking at the ornate clock above his desk.

"That would be correct. Now I would recommend waiting until you reach your home before discussing this any further. I would hate for Harry here to become some type of experiment in the Department of Mysteries…I am sorry, Harry, that was a cruel reminder. Anyway, the Ministry does not generally tolerate people or things they do not understand," Albus finished, angry at himself for bringing up the place where so many of Harry's loved ones had been fatally injured.

"That would be better. I know how they operate at the Ministry. We will all discuss this over the weekend once you are all home for the summer break," Charles said. "Until then good luck to you all on exams," he said, directing his gaze mostly to James and Sirius, whom he thought needed the luck rather more than Remus and Harry who looked determined even with the remnants of tears still in his emerald eyes.

"Off to History of Magic we go," Sirius said, trying to cheer everyone up from the serious discussion they had just been in. He linked his arm through Harry's and nearly skipped to the door to the office, pulling Remus along with them, who had also linked an arm thorough Harry's to offer support.

"Who gave him coffee?" Harry's voice could be heard asking as they left the office. Albus chuckled, happy to be able to smile again after everything that had happened today. He quickly thanked the Potter's for their time and went to watch the exams being given.

Exam week flew by in a rush of papers, last minute studying, the occasional all night quiz session, and a butterbeer or three to unwind after a difficult exam. All of them were taking the full 12 OWLs being offered, since it was made known to pure blood families that taking exams on independent study was allowed and both James and Sirius had told Remus right at the beginning of fifth year. Lily had also found out from studying the OWL rules manual and had decided to take all 12 as well. Harry finally noticed on Wednesday evening after their exams, that Peter was nowhere to be seen. Not that Harry wanted to see the rat, but it was odd that he was not around. "Where is Peter?" Harry asked

"Were you close with Peter as well?" James asked.

"Touchy subject actually. Something that does not appear to be possible since he is not here. I just noticed that he was not here and has not been all week and wondered why," Harry said.

"Something to discuss further this weekend then. Peter was here up until Christmas. His mother pulled him out of Hogwarts to go to one of the smaller schools close to his home," James answered.

"A Hedge school. Something for the witches and wizards who either do not have the money or enough magic to attend Hogwarts. I am guessing that Mrs. Pettigrew finally drank all of the money her late husband left her and did not leave enough to finish paying for Hogwarts. She had been trying to accomplish that since sometime during our first year," Sirius said. "We are not missing him too much though, he had been sneaking off to do something since the end of fourth year. I am not sure I want to know what it is if you happen to know, Harry, but we had already really cut ties with him. We have even taken his name off the map," Sirius continued.

Harry nodded, he did know what Peter had been up to, but had not known that it started in fourth year. His animagus form really did reflect his personality right from the start, since they had not mastered them until a few weeks into fifth year, after he had already started to go down the path towards becoming a Death Eater and betraying everyone. Harry jumped slightly as he remembered something else that happened this week. The memory he had seen of his father hanging Snape upside down, and Snape calling his mother a mudblood when she tried to help him. He did not want to see that happen in real life. The pensive memory was difficult enough to watch.

Between each exam on Thursday, Harry watched for signs that James and Snape would cross paths. The event finally came after the Written Defence exam, which was right before their lunch break. Contrary to Snape's memory, however, it did not start because Sirius claimed that he was bored. Instead, Snape grabbed a hold of Harry, hard enough for Harry to cry out in pain, while Snape laughed and dragged him to the top of a flight of stairs. The connecting flights to the lower levels had just moved away. Snape gave him a push, which would have killed him if Snape had gotten the chance to fully let go of Harry's arms. Instead, Sirius was there along with Remus to catch Harry's small frame and pull him safely back away from the edge of the staircase. James stood there glowering at Snape. 15 minutes later when they were all outside, Snape made a derogatory comment about Remus and his liking for little boys when he saw Remus and Harry with their heads together discussing the exam questions. Sirius stood up along with James and rushed Snape. Before Harry had a chance to stop the events, though after his near death experience this morning he was far less inclined to stop them anyway, Snape was hung up in the air with his greying underpants in the view of most of the school. Lily stormed over and started, much to Harry's surprise, to give Snape a dressing down for his treatment of Harry earlier in the day. When Lily turned to walk away after telling James to let him down, Snape yelled out for everyone to hear that stupid mudbloods should learn to respect their betters before they get eliminated. Harry shook off Remus' arm and stormed over to Snape. "How dare you use that kind of language. One more name or threat and I'll let James pull off your underpants next time," Harry said, sending a finite at Snape to end the levitation spell. Snape hit the ground with a dull thud and walked away in a daze.

Exams ended the next day with no further problems from Snape or any of the other Slytherins. The four boys were up early the next day, eager to leave Hogwarts for the summer and find out more about Harry. The boy in question, on the other hand, was sitting on the couch listlessly, staring into the fire with his shrunken trunk already in his pocket and his snowy owl perched on his shoulder with her cage on the floor at his feet.

"Look at him Moony, I just want to wrap my arms around him. I know you feel it too. Something about him makes my canine side on guard and protective," Sirius said, turning to his boyfriend to see if Remus was feeling the same way.

"I can feel it, Padfoot, even stronger than you since Moony is howling to get out so he can protect Harry. I was so scared when Snape had him at the top of the stairs. He is so small he would have been killed for sure had he fallen. I had to use all my inner strength not to tear Snape to pieces," Remus said.

"I should not feel this way for Jamie's son. Even if this Harry is not going to be the same as the baby they have in several years," Sirius said.

"I know that I want him, and that Moony does as well. I still love you, Padfoot, but it is almost as if we are incomplete without Harry. You said it yourself, the Harry we see now is someone who is our age and will grow up with us just like we grew up together. James will understand. He knows that Harry does not see him as a father, just a friend and brother figure," Remus said.

The conversation halted as Harry spotted them sitting in the corner and stood up from the couch. Hedwig fluttered calmly from his shoulder and perched on the top of her cage. Harry stretched and then walked over to Remus and Sirius. "Are you guys excited to leave Hogwarts tomorrow?" Harry asked, sitting on the edge of the table so that he could talk to them.

"Yes, I am ready to be done for the year," Sirius said, looking around for somewhere else that Harry could sit instead of the hard corner of the table.

"Even I need to make some space in my head for next year's work," Remus answered as he leaned down and took a gentle hold on Harry's wrists. "Come share with me, there is no way you are comfortable on that table. In fact, we will come sit on the couch in front of the fire with you. There is plenty of room for all three of us. They sat on either side of Harry and watched as he yawned and his eyes began to droop. Remus and Sirius pulled Harry down so he was laying with his head in Sirius' lap and his feet in Remus' lap. Harry was asleep within a half-hour with Sirius and Remus not too far behind. It was in this position that James and Lily found the three of them the next morning.


End file.
